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June 25, 2008

Tonight: Local acts hit stages around the state

Plenty of local acts playing around Rhode Island tonight.

Citizens Patrol and Life Trap play rock at AS220, 115 Empire St., Providence. Call 831-9327. 10 p.m. $6. All ages.

Rudy D'Agostino play acoustic rock at Ri-Ra, 50 Exchange Terrace, Providence. 272-1953. 9:30 p.m. to 12:30 a.m.

East Side Horns play rhythm and blues at 20 Water Street in East Greenwich. 885-3700. 8 p.m. to midnight.

Chris Gauthier plays rock at One Pelham East, 270 Thames St., Newport. Call 847-9460. 10 p.m.

Dick Lupino, Yvonne Monnett and Jeff Fountain play jazz at Sardella's Restaurant, 30 Memorial Blvd., Newport. 849-6312. 7:30 to 10 p.m.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 6:50 PM | Comment

Block Island ferry resumes trips today

The Block Island ferry resumed summer trips today after being unable to leave a Connecticut dock because of delays in Amtrak's Thames River railroad bridge project.

Interstate Navigation Company -- which operates the Block Island ferry -- said in a news release that its high-speed vessel and all passenger/car ferries are running as scheduled.

The ferry Manitou will start trips between Newport and Block Island on Saturday.

For information and schedules, go to www.blockislandferry.com, or call the Point Judith office at (866) 783-7996.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 6:15 PM | Comment

American Airlines to stop regional service at T.F. Green

American Airlines will stop its regional jet service at T.F. Green Airport on Nov. 1, airport officials confirmed, pulling out of the airport it has served since 1984.

American Airlines and its American Eagle regional unit will end service to Green and seven other airports and drop flights at other airports as the airline grounds planes and lays off workers because of rising fuel prices. AMR Corp., the airline’s parent company, this week provided details of the cutbacks it had previously announced in May.

American, the world’s largest airline, and Eagle, will cut 62 departures from Chicago, 43 from St. Louis and 42 each from Dallas-Forth Worth and New York’s La Guardia airport, the company said yesterday in a statement. The reductions amount to 12 percent of service at American and 11 percent at Eagle.

Green will lose three daily departures to Chicago when Eagle leaves in the fall for the last time. Capacity on the regional jets is 44 seats.

At one point, Eagle had five daily flights from Green to Chicago and one daily flight to Dallas, according to Patti Doyle, an airport spokeswoman.

“They have been reducing capacity for quite some time,” she said.
Travelers still will be able to fly to Chicago from the Warwick airport, said Kevin Dillon, president of the Rhode Island Airport Corporation, which runs T.F. Green.

“We have good service into Chicago both from Southwest and United” airlines, he said. “There’s capacity . . . to pick up those passengers.”

-- Journal staff writer Paul Grimaldi

The cutbacks are another result of the rising fuel costs pinching the airline industry and the country as a whole, driving up costs and keeping Americans closer to home.

Rising oil prices have drained profits from the airline industry, forcing carriers to cut jobs, ground less efficient planes and slash the number of flights in hopes of boosting air fares.

Airline fuel prices are up 91.5 percent from a year ago, according to the International Air Transport Association.

The airlines recently began charging for a number of previously free services and added ticket surcharges to offset higher fuel prices.

American Airlines started the movement when it decided to charge passengers $15 to check their first bag. United Airlines said it would add a $15 fee for passengers flying on leisure fares booked in advance and a $25 fee for checking a second suitcase.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 6:13 PM | Comment

Police identify man struck by lightning in Bristol

BRISTOL -- Bristol police have identified a fisherman who was apparently struck by lightning during an intense storm Tuesday afternoon.

Edgardo Torres, 42, was injured while fishing off the rocks near Roger Williams University, in Bristol..

Authorities say his friend heard thunder, turned around and saw Torres on the ground. He was unconscious and needed CPR.

Rescue crews brought Torres to Rhode Island Hospital in Providence.

A hospital spokeswoman did not know his condition this afternoon.

-- The Associated Press

Photo gallery: Send in your storm photos, see others

Posted by Mike McKinney at 6:06 PM | Comment

2 Democrats, 1 Republican file to run against Reed

U.S. Sen. Jack Reed, a Rhode Island Democrat, will face several challengers for his congressional seat heading into election season, according to candidate filings.

Christopher Young, of 184 Angell St., Providence, has filed a declaration to run as a Democrat, according to the Secretary of State's office.

Vernon D. Craig, of Newport, also filed a declaration of candidacy to run as a Democrat.

Republican Robert Tingle, of Westerly, filed as a Republican to run against Reed.

Today was the deadline to file declarations of candidacy with the Secretary of State's office.

-- with reports from Katherine Gregg, Journal State House Bureau

Posted by maria caporizzo at 5:52 PM | Comment

Report: Ex-URI education dean under investigation in Ky.

Robert Felner, former dean of the University of Rhode Island’s School of Education, is under investigation by federal officials looking into the possible misappropriation of $500,000 in federal grants, according to the Louisville Courier-Journal.

Felner, who left URI five years ago to become dean of the University of Louisville College of Education and Human Development, was to have become chancellor at the University of Wisconsin-Parkside July 1. But yesterday, the Kentucky paper reports, Felner notified officials there he would resign his appointment, because of the ongoing investigation.

“Dr. Felner is concerned that this is going to create a problem, even if it’s just a perception problem at the University of Wisconsin,” Felner’s lawyer, Scott C. Cox, told the Courier-Journal. Cox also said his client had not mishandled any funds.

The U.S. Postal Service and U.S. Secret Service are investigating the case jointly with the U.S. Attorney’s office, Cox said.

“As part of that investigation, the agencies seized documents and a computer from Felner’s university office Friday,” reported the Courier-Journal. “Felner also answered questions from investigators while they were on campus…”

While in Rhode Island, Felner created the SALT surveys used to assess Rhode Island public schools and was considered a national education figure.

A spokeswoman for the University of Rhode Island said the university is now reviewing the records related to Felner’s grant expenditures while he was an employee here at the university.

-- With reports from Journal staff writer Jennifer D. Jordan

Felner came to URI in 1996 and left in 2003, although he continued to serve on URI’s National Center on Public Education and Social Policy until 2006. In addition, the state Department of Education has for several years hired Felner and the center to develop state report cards, information and data for the department’s Web site and conduct an annual review of the federal Reading First program.

Currently, URI’s National Center on Public Education and Social Policy is in charge of a three year, $2.1 million grant to conduct this work. Education Department spokesman Elliot Krieger said the department is satisfied “we have gotten what we paid for,” and that all payments are in order, but said the department will review all billing associated with the grant.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 5:23 PM | Comment

Update: Woonsocket girl's killer gets life without parole

Journal photo / Kathy Borchers
Lisa Smith, in light green skirt, and other family members listen today as Peter Gillespie, medical examiner, describes the details of Savannah Smith's murder.

PROVIDENCE -- A man who kidnapped, raped and killed an 8-year-old girl in Woonsocket two years ago was sentenced this afternoon to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

The family of victim Savannah Smith clapped when Judge Gilbert V. Indeglia announced the sentence for Joshua Davis, who had pleaded guilty in April to first-degree murder, first-degree child molestation and kidnapping a minor.

This morning, Indeglia listened as Savannah's mother requested that he impose a life sentence with no possibility of parole.

Lisa Smith today told Indeglia she "loathes" Davis.

"He is the lowest piece of scum on the earth," Smith said in her victim impact statement in Providence Superior Court.

The sentence makes Davis the 27th person in the state to receive life without parole, and the first one in a case involving a child as a victim.

Of those cases, Indeglia said, "None was more cruel, heartless, savage or vicious than the one that was done to this child."

The prosecution said Savannah helped her neighbor Davis wash his red convertible in May 2006. She and her sister asked to go for a ride in his car, but her father, David Smith, told them no. The girls went to the Globe Street playground, near Savannah’s home. About a half hour later, one of Savannah’s younger sisters and her cousin returned home and told David Smith that Savannah had left the park with Davis, in his car.

The police found her body the following day in woods off Parkview Boulevard in Cranston.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney, with reports from Journal staff writer Philip Marcelo

The prosecution said it had evidence Davis carried Savannah into the woods, which was strewn with trash and glass, because she was not wearing shoes and sexually molested her.

Davis' lawyer, public defender John J. Hardiman, had earlier argued for a life sentence with possibility for parole, saying that Davis has suffered in his life with bouts of depression, was abused as a child and has had alcohol and drug problems. The public defender also said Davis pleaded guilty rather than put Smith's family through the ordeal of a trial.

Like Samantha's mother, the state Attorney General's Office also asked that Davis receive life imprisonment without parole possibility.

Davis was also sentenced today to life in prison on the molestation and kidnapping charges, with all three to be served consecutively.

“As I reflect upon all the murders my office has prosecuted during my time as attorney general, I can think of none as brutal, offensive, and despicable as this one," Attorney General Patrick Lynch said in a statement after the sentencing. "If ever there was an individual who warranted Rhode Island’s most severe penalty, it is this depraved and monstrous defendant."

Posted by Mike McKinney at 3:34 PM | Comment

Central Falls 19-year-old indicted for murder

PROVIDENCE -- The Providence County Grand Jury has indicted a man on murder and other charges in a slaying that took place in Central Falls on April 26.

Anthony Strobert, 19, of 24 Mary St., Central Falls, was alleged to have shot dead Helder G. Tomar, 19, of Harvey Street, Pawtucket. Strobert was wounded in the incident by the same weapon allegedly used to kill Tomar. The next day, Edelmiro Roman, 16, a Central Falls High School student, was shot fatally while he was walking on Dexter Street.

The police said they believed Roman’s slaying was related, but no one has been charged with that crime.

The incidents brought a state of panic in Central Falls. Mayor Charles Moreau imposed a nighttime curfew on anyone under the age of 18, and two street workers from the Institute for the Study and Practice of Nonviolence were brought in work with young people in an attempt to keep the peace.

Witnesses told the police that Tomar and Strobert got into a fight in Jenks Park, and Tomar pulled out a gun. He shot Strobert, who was able to take the gun from Tomar and shot and killed him, the police said. Strobert was treated in Rhode Island Hospital.
Besides murder, Strobert also was indicted on charges of discharging a firearm, death resulting, carrying a pistol without a license, and assault with a dangerous weapon.

He is to be arraigned July 9 in Providence County Superior Court.

-- Journal staff writer Thomas J. Morgan

Posted by Mike McKinney at 3:33 PM | Comment

Three beaches closed today by health department

The state Department of Health today closed to swimming the City Park Beach in Warwick, Fort Adams State Park Beach in Newport, and Third Beach in Middletown because of high bacteria counts.

Locations that remain closed are Atlantic Beach club's beach, Camp Grosvenor, Conimicut Point Beach, Gorton Pond Beach, and Oakland Beach.

For updates on swimming status at Rhode Island beaches, go to the Department of Health Web site.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 3:20 PM | Comment

Alert: Entwistle convicted of fatally shooting wife, child

WOBURN, Mass. -- A British man was convicted today of shooting to death his wife and infant daughter after jurors rejected his claim the woman had killed their baby then committed suicide while snuggled together in bed.

Neil Entwistle, 29, closed his eyes and shook his head slightly upon being found guilty of two counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of his wife, Rachel, 27, and their 9-month-old baby, Lillian Rose.

Prosecutors maintained he was in debt and dissatisfied with his sex life when he fatally shot his family in their rented Hopkinton home in 2006. After the shootings, he fled to his native England.

The defense did not put on any witnesses. Instead, Entwistle’s attorney claimed Rachel Entwistle shot Lillian Rose and then killed herself while the two snuggled in bed.

Entwistle acknowledged he did not call police when he found the bodies. He claimed he returned the gun to his father-in-law’s home 50 miles away because he wanted to preserve his wife’s honor.

Jurors deliberated just a day and a half before reaching their verdicts. He also was convicted on two weapons charges.

Sentencing was scheduled for Thursday morning. In Massachusetts, the sentence for first-degree murder is automatically life in prison without the possibility of parole.

-- The Associated Press

Posted by Mike McKinney at 3:11 PM | Comment

Tonight: HSGameTime All-State girls outdoor track

Tonight at 6, we continue our coverage of spring All-States by unveiling the 2008 Providence Journal HSGameTime All-State girls outdoor track team. You can find the first-team and second-team All-State listings as well as All-Division and All-Class teams, at HSGameTime. Right now, you can get watch and listen to a multimedia interview with Classical track stars Victoria Flowers and Patrick Onye.

Here is the online schedule for spring All-States. The new teams will be announced at 6 p.m. each day.

Online now: Boys tennis, golf, boys volleyball, softball, girls lacrosse, boys lacrosse
Tonight: Girls outdoor track
Tomorrow: Boys outdoor track
Friday: Independent stars
Saturday: Baseball

Posted by Mike McDermott at 2:03 PM | Comment

Friend urged murder defendant to call 9-1-1

WARWICK -- During a 1 a.m. phone conversation on the day police would later find Kelly Ann Anderson dead in Brian Mlyniec's house, a childhood friend told Mlyniec to make another phone call: 9-1-1.

Bill Healey testified in Mlyniec's murder trial today that Mlyniec said he did not want the police to come over to his house.

Mlyniec, 45, had called, in a conversation lasting about 25 minutes, to say he had picked up a woman in Providence and that she was going in and out of it, unresponsive, Healey said in Kent County Superior Court. Mlyniec told him he had already put the woman into a bathtub where, according to previous testimony, he put cold water on her.

The prosecutor asked Healey how the call ended, and Healey said he told Mlyniec again to call 9-1-1.

Mlyniec, of West Warwick, is charged with first-degree murder, accused of killing the 41-year-old Andersen at his home two years ago. At about 1:30 p.m. on June 23, 2006, an emergency medical technician has said he went to Mlyniec's 95 Harris Ave. address in response to a report of an unresponsive woman and said he found Anderson lying on her back on couch cushions in a disheveled living room with Mlyniec hovering over her.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney, with reports from Journal staff writer Nandini Jayakrishna

In court today, another witness, Mark Townsend, who is a neighbor of Mlyniec's and has known him from 25 years, testified that later the morning of June 26, about 7:15 a.m., he saw Mlyniec in the area between their homes. Mlyniec told him he had picked up a woman that night and that she was out of it, Townsend said, and that Mlyniec looked concerned about her.

Townsend said there was no blood on Mlyniec's face or shirt. Another neighbor, Michael Rothermel, in testimony yesterday said he saw blood on Mlyniec's face and right arm. Rothermal said it was 5:30 a.m. when he saw Mlyniec.

Posted by Mike McKinney at 1:53 PM | Comment

Ex-Lincoln official Picerno accused of arranging beating

A corrupt former town official in Lincoln has been arrested by the Rhode Island State Police on charges that he arranged the beating of a Lincoln town councilman.

Robert Picerno, who figured prominently in the Lincoln bribery scandal involving former town administrator Jonathan Oster, was charged this morning with conspiracy and threatening a public official for allegedly arranging for two men to assault and threaten then-councilman Dean L. Lees Jr. in 2001.

Lees, who told the state police at the time that the assault was related to his political stands, said that he was leaving a carpet and tile store on Branch Avenue in Providence when a man attacked him from behind as he got into his car.

Lees said at the time that the man punched him in the back of the head eight to 10 times, and that the other man threatened him, saying, ``If you keep doing what you’re doing in town, we’ll be back.’ ‘’

State Police Maj. Joseph R. Miech says that Picerno, 61, was arrested this morning at his home at 105 Woodside Drive, North Providence, and has already been arraigned in court and released on bail.

Picerno, a former Lincoln Planning Commission member whose son once ran against Lees for Town Council, was sentenced to eight years, with three to serve, after pleading no contest in 2004 to four counts of taking or trying to solicit, bribes, and three counts of conspiracy to solicit bribes.

In a trial earlier this year, the state charged that Oster, with Picerno, conspired to solicit bribes from two potential buyers of a piece of town-controlled land on Route 116 in Lincoln.

Oster was convicted and subsequently committed suicide. Because Oster had not been sentenced before his death, the conviction was set aside.

According to Miech, the state police developed information this year that Picerno had hired one of the men who accosted Lees. Both men were subsequently convicted and sentenced to more than three years in state prison. One was denied parole during his sentence because of his refusal to cooperate with the authorities regarding who put them up to it.

According to an affidavit, Picerno paid $12,500 to have Lees beaten up.

Extra: Read the affidavit in support of Picerno's arrest

-- Journal staff writer Mike Stanton

Posted by Mike McKinney at 12:56 PM | Comment

Governor to sign $6.9B state budget tomorrow

PROVIDENCE -- Governor Carcieri plans to sign the state budget tomorrow at 1 p.m., the final step in finalizing the $6.9 billion tax-and-spend approved by the General Assembly last week.

The plan will become law after it is signed, and outlines virtually all state spending for the budget year that begins July 1.

The governor's office issued a statement this afternoon announcing the signing ceremony, which will take place in the ornate State Room on the second floor of the State House.

"This signing will mark the resolution of the budget crisis while avoiding any broad based tax increases, an accomplishment that is a credit to the House Speaker Murphy, Senate President Montalbano, and all legislators,” Governor Carcieri said. “It also marks the introduction of structural reforms that will reduce projected deficits in future years.”

The House Finance Committee estimates that the budget will lead to a $97-million deficit for the coming fiscal year, which is down considerably from previous projections.

Murphy and Montalbano are expected to attend the ceremony.

Among other things, the budget increases local education assistance for cities and towns, but freezes non-education aid at reduced levels. It includes $90 million in cuts to the state’s work force (which have yet to be detailed) and another $67 million in savings by reducing Medicaid programs that serve the state's poor, elderly and disabled.

After the budget was passed by the Democrat-led House, the Republican Carcieri said, “This budget represents a watershed moment in the recent history of Rhode Island state government. In the face of a severe fiscal crisis, we have worked together to reduce spending and balance the budget without raising taxes.”

-- Steve Peoples, Journal's State House Bureau

Posted by Steve Peoples at 12:30 PM | Comment

Board votes to revoke former chief Prignano's pension

The Providence Retirement Board this morning voted to revoke the pension of retired police chief Urbano Prignano Jr.

The revocation was based on Prignano's assumed "dishonorable service," because Prignano has admitted helping officers cheat on their promotional exams.

Prignano is collecting $66,560 a year. His pension has been an issue for the board for six years.

Lawyer Vincent A. Ragosta, Jr., who was hired to gather evidence against Prignano, advised the Board at a meeting at City Hall that they had the power to make the final decision, but that "out of an abundance of caution" the board should petition the Rhode Island Superior Court to implement the revokation.

The board then voted to accept Ragosta's recommendation and sue in Superior Court.

Prignano will continue to collect payments while the Superior Court considers the lawsuit.

-- Journal staff writer Gregory Smith

Prignano, who was police chief under former Mayor Vincent A. Cianci Jr., retired under pressure on Jan. 31, 2001, wrapping up a 34-year career.

Prignano implicated himself in some of the cheating in his testimony during the Operation Plunder Dome trial of Cianci and others in 2002. His testimony was among the evidence previously presented to the Board.

Prignano's pension has been an issue for years. In June of 2002, a month after Prignano's Plunder Dome testimony, a Retirement Board member began a move on the Board to revoke Prignano's pension.

A city ordinance says honorable service is a prerequisite to receiving a pension and, according to the interpretation of city officials, a lack of such service calls for the reduction or revocation of a pension.

Posted by Jack Perry at 11:55 AM | Comment

Driver changes plea in crash that killed 16-year-old

The woman accused of causing the fiery crash that resulted in the death of 16-year-old Samantha Marie Beaudette on Route 95 in Pawtucket three years ago changed her plea from not guilty to no contest this morning.

Kellie Woodbine, who was disfigured in the crash, entered the plea before Judge Mark A. Pfeiffer in Superior Court.

Woodbine, 29, of Cumberland, pleaded no contest to driving while intoxicated, death resulting and reckless driving, death resulting.

The charges carry a maximum possible sentence of 25 years in prison. But as a result of a plea agreement between Woodbine's attorney, Steven D. DiLibero, and Assistant Attorney General Stephen Regine, the sentence will be capped at eight years in prison, and Judge Pfeiffer will have the option of imposing less prison time at sentencing on Sept. 10.

In court, Regine said the state would have proven that Woodbine, with Beaudette as a passenger, was traveling 96 mph. in a borrowed 2003 Chevy Avalanche when she lost control on the Pawtucket S curve, struck a barrier in the low-speed lane, skidded 75 feet and struck the Broadway overpass bridge abutment, causing the SUV to burst into flames.

-- Journal staff writer John Castellucci

Posted by Jack Perry at 10:59 AM | Comment

Deadline near for declaring candidacy for R.I. offices

As today's 4 p.m. deadline nears for filing declarations of candidacy, you can see some of those who are running for Rhode Island's local, state and federal offices on the Secretary of State's Web site.

The information is being posted on the secretary of state's "Election 2008"page. at the "2008 Candidate Status" link: www.sec.state.ri.us/candidates/, according to Chris Barnett, spokesman for the Secretary of State's office.

But a heads up: The declarations will not show up online immediately. The site's database does not refresh until 4 a.m. the next day. So, today, all filings are available online that were entered before then yesterday.

According to Barnett, the Secretary of State's office posts filings for the candidates for federal offices. For state and city/town candidates, the office is networked with each board of canvassers in Rhode Island's communities. So when a board of canvassers enters candidates' filings, the Secretary of State site gets the information.

Projo.com plans to obtain all the filings shortly after today's 4 p.m. deadline and post them as soon as possible after that.

All forms and a calendar with every key date leading up to Rhode Island’s primary and general election are posted at http://www.sec.state.ri.us/elections/election08.html.

-- projo.com staff writer Michael P. McKinney

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 10:46 AM | Comment

Funding available for local cleanups

Do you own property that's sitting on top of toxic soil?

The state Department of Environmental Management is preparing to distribute money to assess the level of contamination at Brownfield sites..

The agency plans to allocate $200,000 to assess sites contaminated with hazardous substances and $200,000 for sites contaminated with petroleum.

An informational meeting is scheduled for today at 3:00 p.m. at DEM's Providence headquarters. Officials will be on hand to answer questions and give out applications.

Posted by Brandie M. Jefferson at 9:42 AM | Comment

Amtrak's N.Y. to Boston service canceled until Friday

Amtrak service between New York and Boston is canceled until Friday, while the Thames River Bridge in Connecticut gets a touch-up. Limited alternate train and bus service is being offered in the region until the bridge work is done.

The moveable span of the bridge is being replaced on the 90-year-old drawbridge, which connects Groton and New London, Conn.

Three Boston-New Haven-New York trains via Hartford and Springfield, as well as limited bus services, will offer service, bypassing the bridge .

For detailed information on train routes, visit Amtrak’s Web site or call 1-800-USA-RAIL.

Posted by Brandie M. Jefferson at 9:36 AM | Comment

Storm snapshots: Projo.com readers share their photos

Some of our projo.com readers have shared photos they took during the dramatic thunderstorms that passed through the area yesterday.

And we'd like to make sure you see them, too.

Above, Maria T. Medeiros of Cranston captured a streak of lightning after 6 p.m. in Cranston

See more snapshots of the storm, and submit your own, here.

Posted by Andrea Panciera at 9:30 AM | Comment

Woman facing charges after fatal crash in court today

A Cumberland woman facing possible jail time after a fatal car accident is scheduled to be in court today.

Kellie Woodbine, 29, has been on home confinement since Feb. 12. Before that, she had been free on personal recognizance and recovering from the injuries she sustained in the Dec. 30, 2005 accident.

The crash was on Route 95, at the Pawtucket S-curve, between Exits 20 and 30. Woodbine was driving her pickup truck, when it struck a highway barrier, flew across the road, crashed into a bridge abutment and came to a rest on the shoulder of the highway where it burst into flames.

Woodbine’s passenger, Samantha Marie Beaudette, 16, of Pawtucket, was severely burned. She died two days after the crash. Woodbine has also been receiving treatment for severe burns.

Woodbine faces drunken and reckless driving charges in Superior Court, Providence.

Posted by Brandie M. Jefferson at 9:12 AM | Comment

Woonsocket man to be sentenced for strangling girl

PROVIDENCE -- A Woonsocket man soon learns whether he'll spend the rest of his life in prison for strangling his 8-year-old neighbor after abducting and molesting her.

Joshua Davis will be sentenced this morning in Providence Superior Court for killing Savannah Smith two years ago. He pleaded guilty in April to first-degree murder, kidnapping a minor and child molestation.

Prosecutors are seeking a sentence of life in prison without parole. It's the toughest punishment allowed under Rhode Island law.

Davis was a neighbor to the Smith family, and his girlfriend sometimes baby-sat for them.

Investigators say Davis lured the young girl into his red convertible on May 7, 2006. He drove to Cranston and killed her in a wooded area.

-- The Associated Press

Posted by Jack Perry at 8:10 AM | Comment

New sidewalks on Block Island

Ten thousand feet of sidewalk has been rebuilt along Block Island’s waterfront and at the island’s busiest intersection.

Today, the Rhode Island Department of Transportation will hold a dedication ceremony for the Bridge Gate Square project in New Shoreham.

Bridge Gate Square –– the intersection of Dodge Street, Old Town Road, Ocean Avenue and Corn Neck Road –– was the focal point of the project. The dedication will take place today at 11 a.m. in front of the Block Island Historical Society.

The $2.4-million project reconstructed an intersection in the Old Harbor district, where most of the ferries land. Improvements were also made to the sidewalks along the waterfront, bringing them into compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Posted by Brandie M. Jefferson at 8:07 AM | Comment

Entwistle jury to resume deliberations

WOBURN, Mass. — The jury in the double murder trial of Neil Entwistle is set to begin a second day of deliberations today.

The Middlesex Superior Court jury deliberated yesterday for about six hours.

Yesterday, the jury asked to see records from Entwistle’s laptop from Jan. 20, 2006, the day prosecutors say the Briton shot his wife, Rachel, and baby daughter, Lillian.

A computer forensics expert testified that Entwistle checked his e-mail about 90 minutes after reporting to police that he’d found the bodies.

Entwistle’s defense team said he used his computer to look for jobs before he found his wife and daughter.

Prosecutors say Entwistle was dissatisfied with his sex life and frustrated about his debt when he killed his family.

The defense says his wife shot her baby, then herself.

-- The Associated Press

Posted by Brandie M. Jefferson at 8:01 AM | Comment

Today in history: The Battle of Little Big Horn

On June 25, 1876, Lt. Col. George A. Custer and his 7th Cavalry were wiped out by Sioux and Cheyenne Indians in the Battle of Little Big Horn in Montana.

Watch a video report about today in history.

Download a copy of today's front page in .pdf format.

Posted by Jack Perry at 7:02 AM | Comment

Weather: Enjoy it while it lasts...

What a day!

After days of rain and hail and thunder and lightning, we've got only two things to worry about today -- sun and warm temperatures. The National Weather Service is forecasting a high temperature near 84 degrees and west winds between 5 and 10 mph.

Clouds should roll in tonight, when the temperature drops to about 62 degrees. Expect mild, southwest winds.

But tomorrow. Oh, tomorrow. This may sound familiar: A chance of isolated showers and thunderstorms in the afternoon. Some storms may come with hail and gusty winds. Temperatures should reach about 83 degrees.

If you just want to enjoy today's weather, don't check projo.com's weather page. There's not much to look forward to.

Posted by Brandie M. Jefferson at 7:01 AM | Comment

Today's front page: Ready to build 50 years later

Today's front page features a story about Anthony Palozza, 87, who fought all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court for the right to build 74 cottages on 18 acres of saltmarsh in Misquamicut. Now, 50 years after he bought his property, he's ready to build -- just one house.

Download a copy of today's front page in .pdf format.

Posted by Jack Perry at 7:00 AM | Comment